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The Web #1 review

Meet John Raymond, billionaire bad boy and secret hero. He's putting his money into a new project. As the technologically advanced Web, he's the man ready to help the public at the drop of an email. People in need can contact him via summontheweb.com Are his intentions entirely altruistic or does he have another agenda?

That's the question at the heart of this third Red Circle one-off from DC, generally a lighter read than the previous two (Hangman and Inferno). The other question is, with all his money, why can't the Web come up with a costume that doesn't look like someone vomited it up?

That aside. this is a very likable book. J Michael Straczynski peppers his script with lines that are smart but not smartarse, making narrator and protagonist Raymond someone I want to know more about. He becomes more intriguing as the story goes on, and I hope to see more of him and his troublesome clan very soon.

Roger Robinson and Hilary Barta do a spiffy job on the art, with their best shot being a moody splash partway through. God bless them for giving the Raymond a contemporary haircut, not something that happens often in comics (and no, Superman's mullet did not count). Of course, they can't make the costume look good. No one could, although Jesus Saiz makes a fair fist of it on the cover.

And yes, I did type in summontheweb.com and found, not a superhero, but DC's solicitation for this issue. Nice one, DC!

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